Product holding pucks, sometimes referred to as product carriers, are used, typically in automated production line, such as product filling and/or labeling lines, to hold containers in a desired orientation, e.g., an upright position, for product filling and/or labeling as the container moves along the line. For example, containers to be filled with shampoo, soaps, tanning oils, etc., are often unstable and subject to be tipping. Utilizing a product holding puck to hold the container in a desired orientation as it moves along the production increases the stability of the container for product filling and labeling purposes.
At the start of an automated production line, an empty container is inserted in a product holding puck at an inbound staging area. The puck, supporting the container in an upright position, moves through processing stations of the production line. As the puck and container combination moves along the production line, at different processing stations different tasks are performed, for example, processing stations may perform the following functions, among others, the container may be filled with one or more products, the container may have a cap or top applied, a tamper-resistant seal may be applied over the container opening and/or the cap, one or more labels may be applied, indicia may be printed on the label or the container, etc. When processing is complete and the puck and container are moved to an outbound staging area, the container is removed from the puck and the puck is rerouted back to the inbound staging area for reuse.
The “footprint”, that is, the size and configuration of the outer wall of the product holding puck can be standardized for many different size containers. For example, two different pucks may be used to, for example, support a 16 oz. shampoo container and a 20 oz shampoo container. The two pucks can be designed to have the same size and shape of their respective outer wall configuration. Thus, from the view of the transfer equipment of the production line, even though one puck supports a 16 oz. shampoo container and the other puck supports a 20 oz. shampoo container, the two pucks are identical. That is, on one shift of the production line, the 16 oz. shampoo containers may be filled and, if desired, on the next shift of the production line, the 20 oz. shampoo containers may be filled without the need for any changes to the conveyor guide rails, star wheels, or timing screws.
Thus, utilizing pucks having the same “footprint”, different shapes and sizes of product containers may be supported, filled and/or labeled without the need for changeover of transfer equipment of the production line. That is, from the view of the transfer equipment of the production line, the puck is the item to be moved from along the line, the container is merely an appendage of the puck. Further, pucks may be designed with different heights and the position of the container support structure of the puck may be varied such that, for example, the product filling opening of the container is at a predetermined position with respect to an outer wall of the puck and at a predetermined height above a bottom surface of the puck.
Pucks are typically fabricated of a hard plastic material for durability purposes. Pucks are not only subject to the rough handling of a production line but, additionally, as product is invariably spilled onto the pucks during container filling and capping operations, the pucks must frequently be washed. Depending on the nature of the product or products to be introduced into the container, washing may require use of hot water and detergents, thus, the puck has be impervious to repeated washings with hot water and detergents.
During movement along conveyors, at the filling stations, and in the inbound and outbound staging areas, the pucks tend to collide with each other. As the, collisions between the hard plastic pucks generate a substantial amount of undesirable noise. Given that depending on the size and capacity of the production line, hundreds or thousands of pucks may be moving along the line at any given time, the noise generated by puck-on-puck collisions can be substantial. Employees working at the processing stations or overseeing the production line are constantly subject to noise generated by puck-on-puck collisions, in addition to the noise necessarily generated by the production line. Noise is undesirable as it complicates oral communication between employees. Additionally, from an ergonomic point of view, reducing a level of noise that employees are subjected to is always desirable. Noise may contribute to stress, inability to concentrate, etc.
What is needed is a product holding puck that is both durable and that has noise damping or noise reduction capability or features.